Titans close up for next year, maybe longer

TRENTON — What the league considered just rumors became fact on Tuesday.

The ECHL and Trenton Titans both released official statements confirming Monday’s exclusiveTrentonian report that the team will be ceasing operations for the 2013-14 season and, as of now, beyond.

However, according to Titans GM Rich Lisk, he’s hoping to have his team back at the Sun National Bank Center as early as the 2014-15 season.

“I think it’s very realistic, and I hope more than anything that happens,” said Lisk, who was part of the Delaware Valley Sports Group that purchased the team from the Martinson family in late March 2012.

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“This is a tough day for everyone, and I especially feel for my staff and the fans. But there were some things that were just out of my control and above me. I poured my heart into this, and I think we can come back.”

A league spokesman told The Trentonian that Trenton’s membership no longer exists, and that any group would have to apply for an expansion team or purchase an existing franchise and then apply for relocation to Trenton, pending the approval of the Board of Governors. There will not, however, be a reoccurrence of what happened prior to the 2011-12 season, when the Titans hastily put together a team after the Trenton Devils folded.

“That door is closed,” said ECHL commissioner Brian McKenna. “We’d like to see something back here in the future. At this point, however, it would have to be for the 14-15 season or beyond. But a year or two without hockey might not be the worst thing for the market.”

Although the fans the team did have — the team has contended that the league’s posted attendance numbers for this season are inaccurate and they in fact drew an average of 3,359 fans per game — would surely disagree, it was also a tough day for the league as well, especially McKenna, who was formerly a Titans general manager.

“Having been there from day one and having seen the arena come out of the ground, this day was very difficult,” he said.

“To see how it was back then to today, it’s pretty painful. It’s difficult, but in some ways, I think it was inevitable...there had been a trend over a period of six, seven, eight years, and what we’re seeing now is just the culmination of that.”

Through the team’s official release, the Titans have stated that they “fully intend to reimburse our loyal season ticket holders for their 2013-14 season tickets” and that information would be released in the coming weeks in regards to that process.